Scandal's Katie Lowes on Quinn's Insane Season, How They Shot Those Torture Scenes, and the Day Shonda Rhimes Changed Her Life

I know it's all part of this time of year. But I feel like it's never going to end, and it's honestly starting to depress me.

I'm not talking about the brutal weather—I'm talking about Scandal's winter hiatus. The show isn't back until February 27, but never fear: Katie Lowes (who totally feels our pain over this Scandal-less stretch) busted up my midseason blues by talking all things Quinn 'n' Huck, Charlie, and Shonda. I feel much better—and by the time you get to the bottom of the page, you will too. Gladiator's guarantee.

KL: It's so painful. Without those Thursday-night Twitter parties, you feel disconnected. Every Thursday I'm just like, to my husband, "I guess we should go to a movie?" Plus, I'm very excited for you to see what we've been up to.

MA: Aren't we all! I mean, your friends and family must be nagging you constantly for spoilers...

KL: They're bugging out. I get 80 thousand emails a day. People are constantly asking, "Who are your scenes with today? What are you wearing?" They're trying to get anything out of me.

MA: Quinn's story has been so insane this season. Even being on a show this twisty, is there still one thing that you can't believe actually happened?

KL: When we got to the table read where Quinn walks into her apartment, and Huck is waiting there with the tarp and the toolbox—I still, in my heart of hearts, thought, There's no way in hell he's going to do anything to her. He'll scare her, but he won't cross the line. But I was forgetting that the brilliant Shonda Rhimes has no lines.

MA: I think we all, at first, were in disbelief that Huck would really go there. What was it like playing those torture scenes with Guillermo Diaz?

KL: Guillermo and I both cried when we found out what we had to do. We're really tight in real life, and we just couldn't believe where we were going to have to go with each other.

MA: How long did it take to shoot that stuff?

KL: We worked on it for about 13 hours. There were so many takes. And I don't think I could have done that with anyone else, to be honest. As soon as we'd cut, Guillermo would be like, "Are you OK?" He was having the hardest time remembering his lines, because he was like, "As your friend, I don't want to do this." We really took care of each other. And as screwed up as it sounds, I think Huck and Quinn got closer in those scenes too. He loves to torture people, and he got to do that to his protegee.

MA: I need to ask about the props, because they honestly scare the crap out of me. Are they all real?

KL: One hundred percent real. For example, the [device that held her mouth open] was really in my mouth, but it's not open as far as it could go. I'm acting like it's really painful, but it's not. The tool Huck used to tear out my molars was just in the middle of my mouth, nowhere near my teeth. The duct tape on my mouth had been rubbed all over pieces of cotton, so there's no more stickiness to it. And the drill—I would throw that thing down into a floor mat next to his leg.

MA: I'm literally no less scared even hearing all of these tricks.

KL: Trust me, I had to go through this with my mother a thousand times. She was on set that day, and she was like, "If I hear you screaming, I'm going to run in there and yell at people!" She also reminded me that she paid a lot of money for my braces.

MA: Ah, classic mom reaction! For her sake and mine—please tell me we've seen the worst of the Quinn-Huck saga.

KL: We're not that far ahead of you—we just had the table read for episode 15. But let's just say: There are so many darker depths to explore on the Huckleberry Quinn ride.

MA: Oh, boy. OK. Let's talk about Charlie, Quinn's co-assassin/love interest. What's it been like working with George Newbern?

KL: At first, I was just like, "I'm making out with Brian McKenzie from Father of the Bride? What?"

MA: I know. I have the hardest time accepting him as an evil dude—I keep waiting for Steve Martin to walk in and talk some sense into him.

KL: It's perfect, though, because what makes Charlie so great is he's this lovable killer. He eats doughnuts and lollipops and has this lovable face, but he's a sicko.

KL: It's disgusting how much we love each other. We just had these Golden Globes parties, and we'd part ways and try to talk to other people—only to five minutes later come back to our Scandal group. We dance in between takes. It all stems from Shonda and Kerry—they're positive, happy people.

MA: Shonda Rhimes has become this amazing figure in Hollywood, one of the most powerful producers of our time. What has it been like to work with her so closely?

KL: She is a genius. I mean, what an inspiration to be able to work for a woman who has done all of this on her own, with brains and hard work. Her work ethic is amazing—she's working 100 million hours a day and raising a family. As a woman, it doesn't get any better than that. The day she called me into her office and told me she was giving me the role of Quinn, I cried hysterically. I had been on Private Practice, but until that moment, I was also a babysitter and a waitress and a caterer. She is the person who changed my life, and I love her with all my heart.

Like I said, nonstop lovefest! Follow the delightful Katie on Twitter here and Instagram here—and catch up on Scandal with Phoebe's recaps here.